### Attack on Doctors Without Borders Ambulance Deepens Haiti's Violence Crisis

A tragic incident unfolded in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Monday when a Doctors Without Borders ambulance was assaulted by police and a vigilante group, leading to the deaths of two patients. This is the latest in a series of violent episodes gripping the nation.

According to a statement from the international humanitarian organization, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the ambulance was transporting three patients who had sustained gunshot wounds and MSF medical staff to an MSF-operated hospital. The vehicle was stopped by police just before reaching its destination.

Initially, law enforcement tried to detain the patients. Eventually, the police decided to escort the ambulance to a different hospital, where the situation took a dire turn. The ambulance came under siege by both police and a vigilante group who surrounded it, slashed its tires, and used tear gas on MSF personnel. The wounded patients were forcibly removed from the ambulance and taken a short distance from the hospital grounds, where at least two of them were executed.

Doctors Without Borders reported that their staff inside the ambulance were attacked, threatened, and held captive for over four hours.

This violent act is part of a wider pattern of unrest in Haiti. Vigilante groups have been forming in response to escalating gang violence in the country. Since the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, gang activity has surged, with an estimated 600,000 people displaced and thousands more fleeing the country.

The United Nations reported that approximately 85 percent of Port-au-Prince is now under gang control, with groups involved in kidnappings, extortion, and drug trafficking. They even recruit children into their ranks. "Serious violations of human rights persist on a large scale with total impunity," according to a recent U.N. report.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres compared the level of insecurity in Haiti to that found in countries at war, highlighting the urgency of the crisis.

Compounding the chaotic scenario, the Federal Aviation Administration suspended flights from the United States to Haiti after three U.S. airliners were fired upon while trying to land in Port-au-Prince on the same day as the ambulance attack.

This is not an isolated incident for Doctors Without Borders; in September, another critically injured patient died after an MSF ambulance was stopped and detained by police.

The humanitarian group has condemned the attack, urging authorities to protect the right to medical care and ensure the safety of patients and medical personnel. "This act is a shocking display of violence, both for the patients and for MSF medical personnel," said Christophe Garnier, head of the MSF mission. "It seriously calls into question MSF's ability to continue delivering essential care to the Haitian people, who are in dire need."